NNP to host national convention in March

With 2017 widely expected to be an election year, the ruling New National Party (NNP) of Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has announced its list of planned activities for the year without giving any hints about the possible date for the national poll.

The party’s General Secretary, Roland Bhola and Public Relations Officer, Senator Simon Stiell outlined the planned activities during a press conference held Tuesday at the NNP’s headquarters at Mt. Helicon, Upper Lucas Street, St. George.

Bhola who is the Minister of Youth and Sports in the government announced that NNP will hold its annual Convention and rally on March 26 at the St. Andrew’s Anglican Secondary School (SAASS) at Telescope in St. Andrew.

He told reporters that as the party gets ready to celebrate its fourth year in office, a documentary, showing all of the major accomplishments of the Mitchell-led administration would be aired on the Government Information Service (GIS) starting on February 9.

He said a major emphasis of the party in the year would be “getting closer home to the people,” through the showing of documentaries at the constituency level, which will “zero in on the work done (in individual constituencies), so that people can have an appreciation of what has been done at that level.”

As part of the planned activities of NNP, church services will be held on February 18 and 19, at the constituency level, where persons would attend a church of their choice to give thanks and praise on any one of the two days.

The NNP Women’s Arm will host its annual convention on May 28 at the Boca Secondary School, where a new executive would be elected, while the Youth Arm of the party will elect its new executive on June 25 at the Springs Government School.

Additionally, Bhola said the party is seeking an “opportunity to have a youth debate or a panel discussion at the Grenada Trade Centre, to look at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the value of the youthful population and what it is they would like to see happening not just in Grenada but within the wider Caribbean area.

According to Bhola, this would be done in “collaboration with the government as the party seeks to expose Grenadian youth to the CARICOM leaders,” when they meet in Grenada for the “CARICOM Heads of Government meet in Grenada during the first week in July.”

Other activities for the year include, an “all day fete,” on August 12 at Mt. Helicon, the party’s General Council meeting on September 24 and the annual Thanksgiving celebrations in the month of October, which Bhola said will take a different turn this year with proposals on the table to make it at least “a one or two weeks celebration.

“I know that the Conference of Churches along with the Social Partners have been looking at that since last year…so as a party we think it is in our best interest to support whatever it is that is put forward,” he added.

According to Bhola, a “major fund-raising activity” is also planned for the month of November, while in December the constituency representatives would be given an opportunity to bring cheers of joy to persons in their communities as done annually.

Speculation is rife that Prime Minister Mitchell is most likely to set the date for general election sometime between June and July or within the November to December period.